Juan Pablo Duarte y Díez (26 de enero de 1813 - 15 de julio de 1876) [1] fue un líder militar, escritor, activista y político nacionalista dominicano que fue el más destacado de los padres fundadores de la República Dominicana y lleva el título de Padre de la Nación . Como una de las figuras más célebres de la historia dominicana , Duarte es considerado un héroe popular y visionario revolucionario en la República Dominicana moderna, quien junto con los generales militares Ramón Matías Mella y Francisco del Rosario Sánchez , organizó y promovió La Trinitaria , una sociedad secreta que eventualmente condujo a la revuelta dominicana y la independencia del dominio haitiano en 1844 y el inicio de la Guerra de Independencia Dominicana .
Nacido en el seno de una familia de clase media-alta en 1813, sus ansias de saber y sus sueños de superación lo llevaron a Europa, donde afianzó sus ideas liberales. Estas ideas formularon las líneas maestras para establecer un estado dominicano independiente. Al regresar, se dedicó voluntariamente a la docencia en las calles, improvisando una escuela en el negocio de su padre, empeñado en que el pueblo de su época asimilara sus ideales de ilustración revolucionaria.
Duarte se convirtió en oficial de la Guardia Nacional y un año después, en 1843, participó en la "Revolución Reformista" contra la dictadura de Jean-Pierre Boyer de Haití , que ocupaba Santo Domingo desde hacía más de 20 años. Después de la derrota de los haitianos y la proclamación de la República Dominicana en 1844, la Junta formada para designar al primer gobernante de la nación eligió a Duarte por una fuerte mayoría de votos para presidir la nación, pero él declinó la propuesta, mientras que Tomás Bobadilla asumió el cargo en su lugar. [2]
Duarte ayudó a inspirar y financiar la Guerra de Independencia de la República Dominicana , pagando un alto precio que eventualmente lo arruinaría financieramente. Duarte también estaba en fuerte desacuerdo con los sectores realistas y pro anexión de la nación, especialmente con el rico caudillo y hombre fuerte militar Pedro Santana , quien buscaba reincorporarse al Imperio español . De estas luchas, Santana emergió victorioso mientras que Duarte sufrió en el exilio, a pesar de regresar algunas veces, Duarte vivió la mayor parte de sus años restantes en Venezuela hasta su muerte en 1876.
Duarte nació el 26 de enero de 1813 en Santo Domingo , Capitanía General de Santo Domingo [1] durante el período comúnmente llamado España Boba . En sus memorias, el miembro de La Trinitaria José María Serra de Castro describió a Duarte como un hombre de tez sonrosada, rasgos afilados, ojos azules y un cabello dorado que contrastaba con su bigote espeso y oscuro. [3] Duarte nació en una familia de clase media que se dedicaba al comercio marítimo y la ferretería en la zona portuaria de Santo Domingo. [4] Su padre era Juan José Duarte Rodríguez, un peninsular de Vejer de la Frontera , Reino de Sevilla , España, y su madre era Manuela Díez Jiménez de El Seibo , Capitanía General de Santo Domingo; tres de los abuelos de Duarte eran europeos. [a] Duarte tenía 9 hermanos: su hermano mayor, Vicente Celestino Duarte (1802–1865), un hombre alto, moreno y de pelo largo, era dueño de una tienda, leñador y ganadero que nació en Mayagüez, Puerto Rico ; una de las hermanas de Duarte fue Rosa Protomártir Duarte (1820–1888), una artista que colaboró con él dentro del movimiento de Independencia. En 1801 la familia Duarte emigró de Santo Domingo a Mayagüez, Puerto Rico . [6] Estaban evadiendo el malestar causado por la Revolución Haitiana en la isla. Muchas familias dominicanas abandonaron la isla durante este período. [7] Toussaint Louverture , gobernador de Saint-Domingue (hoy Haití ), una antigua colonia de Francia situada en el tercio occidental de La Española, [8] [9] llegó a la capital de Santo Domingo, situada en los dos tercios orientales de la isla, el año anterior y proclamó el fin de la esclavitud (aunque los cambios no fueron permanentes). En ese momento, Francia y Saint-Domingue (el tercio occidental de la isla), estaban pasando por movimientos sociales exhaustivos, a saber, la Revolución Francesa y la Revolución Haitiana . Al ocupar el lado español de la isla, L'Ouverture estaba utilizando como pretexto los acuerdos previos entre los gobiernos de Francia y España en la Paz de Basilea firmada en 1795, que había dado el área española a Francia. Louverture quería convertir las antiguas instituciones españolas al francés y restablecer la economía de plantación en ambos lados de la isla.
Al llegar a Santo Domingo Norte, L'Ouverture inmediatamente buscó abolir la esclavitud en territorio dominicano, a pesar de que la esclavitud fue abolida en 1821 por la constitución española de Haití . Puerto Rico todavía era una colonia española, y Mayagüez, al estar tan cerca de La Española, justo al otro lado del Pasaje de la Mona , se había convertido en un refugio para inmigrantes ricos de Santo Domingo como los Duarte y otros nativos nacidos en el lado español que no aceptaban la dictadura haitiana. La mayoría de los estudiosos asumen que el primer hijo de los Duarte, Vicente Celestino, nació aquí en este momento en el lado este del Pasaje de la Mona. Sin embargo, la familia regresó a Santo Domingo en 1809, después de la reconquista española de Santo Domingo , liderada por el gobernador general Juan Sánchez Ramírez , que aplastó decisivamente el dominio francés en Santo Domingo, pero regresó al dominio español .
En 1819, Duarte ingresó en la escuela de Manuel Aybar donde aprendió a leer, escribir, gramática y aritmética. Fue discípulo del doctor Juan Vicente Moscoso de quien obtuvo su formación superior en latín, filosofía y derecho, debido al cierre de la universidad por parte de las autoridades haitianas. Tras el exilio del doctor Moscoso a Cuba, su función fue continuada por el sacerdote Gaspar Hernández .
En diciembre de 1821, cuando Duarte tenía ocho años, miembros de una élite criolla de la capital de Santo Domingo proclamaron su independencia del dominio español, llamándose Haití Español . Los historiadores hoy llaman al breve cortejo de esta élite con la soberanía la Independencia Efímera . El líder más destacado del golpe contra el gobierno colonial español fue uno de sus antiguos partidarios, José Núñez de Cáceres . Estos individuos estaban cansados de ser ignorados por la Corona, y algunos también estaban preocupados por el nuevo giro liberal en Madrid .
Su acción no fue un hecho aislado. La década de 1820 fue una época de profundos cambios políticos en todo el mundo atlántico español , que afectaron directamente la vida de la clase media como los Duarte. Comenzó con el período conflictivo entre los realistas españoles y los liberales en la península Ibérica , que hoy se conoce como el Trienio Liberal . Los patriotas estadounidenses en armas, como Simón Bolívar en América del Sur, inmediatamente cosecharon los frutos de la desestabilización de España y comenzaron a hacer retroceder a las tropas coloniales. Incluso las élites conservadoras en Nueva España (como Agustín de Iturbide en México ), que no tenían intención de ser gobernadas por los anticlericales españoles, se movieron para romper los lazos con la corona en España.
Muchos otros en Santo Domingo querían independizarse de España por razones mucho más cercanas a su hogar. Inspirados por la revolución y la independencia en la isla, los dominicanos organizaron una serie de movimientos y conspiraciones diferentes en el período de 1809 a 1821 contra la esclavitud y el colonialismo. [10]
El gobierno provisional de Cáceres solicitó apoyo al nuevo gobierno de Simón Bolívar, pero su petición fue ignorada dados los conflictos internos de la Gran Colombia . [11]
Mientras tanto, un plan de unificación con Haití se fortalecía. Los políticos haitianos querían mantener la isla fuera de las manos de las potencias imperialistas europeas y así salvaguardar la Revolución Haitiana [ cita requerida ] . El presidente de Haití, Jean-Pierre Boyer, envió un ejército que tomó la parte oriental de La Española. Los españoles residentes en Santo Domingo, especialmente los de origen catalán , dieron la bienvenida a la incorporación del país a la República de Haití. Así, cuando Boyer llegó a la ciudad al frente de sus tropas, los comerciantes españoles le enviaron una carta en la que se adherían al nuevo orden que se implementaba. Sin embargo, el padre de Duarte fue uno de los comerciantes españoles de la ciudad que se negó a firmar el documento y, según varios documentos, optó por involucrarse en conspiraciones separatistas que intentaron gestarse durante los años iniciales de la dominación haitiana, aunque nunca se materializaron.
El 6 de enero de 1823, Boyer decretó que todos los jóvenes entre 16 y 25 años serían reclutados en el ejército haitiano. Esta medida provocó que la Universidad de Santo Domingo perdiera a sus estudiantes y en consecuencia tuvo que cerrar sus puertas. El 14 de noviembre de 1824, Boyer estableció el francés como idioma oficial, único y obligatorio en las actas de los Juzgados, el Registro Civil y los notarios públicos de toda la isla. Las luchas entre Boyer y la vieja colonia ayudaron a producir una migración de plantadores y élite. Siguiendo la costumbre burguesa de enviar a los hijos prometedores al extranjero para que se educaran, los Duarte enviaron a Juan Pablo a Estados Unidos y Europa en 1828 [ cita requerida ] .
Para su viaje, Duarte estuvo acompañado por Pablo Pujols, un comerciante catalán que también era amigo de la familia de los Duarte. Pujols había vivido en el país durante algún tiempo, y para el viaje aceptó ser el tutor del joven Duarte. Sin embargo, cuando Duarte subió al barco, el capitán reprochó a los dos viajeros el hecho de que los habitantes de la parte española de la isla ahora vivían bajo el dominio haitiano. Incluso afirmó que solo lo abordaría a menos que Duarte le dijera que no sentía vergüenza de ser "haitiano". Aunque Duarte respondió que era dominicano, el capitán se jactó duramente de que los dominicanos eran cobardes por someterse al yugo haitiano, y por lo tanto, no merecían una identidad, expresando las siguientes palabras: "No tienes nombre, porque ni tú ni tus padres merecen tenerlo, porque, cobardes y serviles, inclinan la cabeza bajo el tiempo de sus esclavos". Este momento conmovió profundamente al aún adolescente Duarte, quien años después diría que esas humillantes palabras lo llevaron en ese mismo momento a tomar la resolución de luchar por la Independencia dominicana. [12] Le aseguró entonces al capitán que no descansaría hasta que su pueblo fuera libre. [13]
Duarte salió del país por primera vez rumbo a España siendo un adolescente. Antes de llegar a Europa, donde iría a estudiar, pasó una breve temporada en Estados Unidos . Aunque se cree que entró en Norteamérica por Nueva York , otra versión indica que lo hizo por Providence , Rhode Island , el 2 de julio de 1829, y que de allí se dirigió a la ciudad conocida hoy como la Gran Manzana . En Nueva York estudió inglés , idioma que el señor Groot le había introducido en Santo Domingo. Además, como señala Rosa Duarte en Apuntes , comenzó a estudiar Geografía Universal con el señor W. Davis, quien le daba clases en su propia residencia. Según el historiador Pedro Troncoso Sánchez, estando en Inglaterra , concretamente Southampton , desde donde Duarte iría a Londres fue su puerta de entrada a Europa, estudiaría filosofía, historia, derecho, ciencias políticas y geografía. Siguió rumbo a Francia, donde llegó a El Havre y luego tocó París . Fue allí donde perfeccionó su francés , idioma que había estudiado en Santo Domingo con Monsieur Bruat. [14] Mientras asistía a un banquete en Hamburgo, a través de una logia llamada Oriente, se introdujo en la masonería , absorbiendo ideales de libertad , igualdad y fraternidad .
En Europa, convulsionada en la época del romanticismo , el liberalismo , el nacionalismo y el socialismo utópico , se vio envuelta en atmósferas revolucionarias en la época. Numerosos acontecimientos políticos y sociales sacudieron a varias naciones europeas en la segunda y tercera décadas del siglo XIX. Entre tales acontecimientos se encuentran los de Portugal ( expulsión en 1811 de las tropas francesas por los británicos bajo el mando del duque de Wellington ; ocupación militar inglesa hasta que en 1822 el rey Juan VI regresó de Brasil y aceptó una constitución liberal), Bélgica (1795-1815 Francia la ocupa; en 1815 unificación con las Provincias Unidas ; 1830 secesión de Holanda e independencia de las provincias belgas ), e Italia ( convulsiones políticas tras la caída de Napoleón Bonaparte ). Duarte también sentía curiosidad por conocer los acontecimientos ocurridos en Argentina , Colombia , Ecuador , Venezuela y México , entre otras naciones, tras la invasión de Napoleón a España en 1808, lo que influyó aún más en sus ideales liberales hacia su propio país. Es de suponer que Duarte sabía que el general Rafael del Riego , un militar y político español, luchó contra la ocupación de España por Francia en 1808, un general que introdujo los principios masónicos en los cuarteles militares, principios masónicos que atrajeron a Duarte durante toda su vida. Los acontecimientos españoles de 1808 y la muerte del general Riego en 1823 en la horca, como se presume, fueron discutidos cuando Duarte llegó a España en 1828 y debieron haber captado su atención de manera decisiva. [15]
También a la llegada de Duarte a España estaban muy frescos los acontecimientos del Trienio Liberal (1820–1823), cuando el 9 de marzo de 1820 el general del Riego encabezó un movimiento militar que obligó al rey Fernando VII a jurar el 9 de julio, como rey constitucional, gobierno en el que los liberales jugaron un papel importante. La lucha por la independencia en América, el apoyo de Fernando VII al retorno al absolutismo y la invasión de los Cien Mil Hijos de San Luis auspiciada por la Santa Alianza , provocaron el derrumbe del gobierno liberal y el retorno al absolutismo el 1 de octubre de 1823. El estudio de estos acontecimientos debió ser muy importante para Duarte. Mientras Duarte estaba en España, en París ocurrían los acontecimientos de la Revolución de Julio de 1830 , donde la figura del liberal español José de Espronceda se movía incesantemente en las trincheras para permitir que el liberalismo en Francia lograra la victoria frente a los conservadores que propugnaban que los Borbones continuaran con el régimen absolutista. [15]
Habiéndose lanzado a estas escenas de radicalismo europeo, Duarte tuvo el placer de presenciar los nuevos regímenes de libertad y derechos que habían surgido después de la Revolución Francesa; estaba intrigado por los nuevos cambios producidos en Alemania y Francia, pero ninguno captó su interés más que el de España, de cuyas reformas fueron introducidas por las Cortes de Cádiz . Permanecería en Barcelona durante el resto de sus viajes, donde se cree que estudió derecho. [16] Según el historiador militar, Rafael Percival Peña, Duarte también adquirió algún entrenamiento militar durante su estancia en España.
Fue entonces cuando comenzó a tomar forma su ideología política, en la que se fundían el nacionalismo y el liberalismo sobre un fondo romántico: Duarte comprendió que el pueblo dominicano tenía identidad propia y tenía el derecho absoluto de lograr la independencia política. Desde principios del siglo XVI, los dominicanos, a pesar de las desventajas económicas, tienen una historia de rebeliones y batallas triunfantes contra fuerzas holandesas , británicas , francesas y españolas (las dos últimas de las cuales en las últimas décadas, fueron expulsadas de Santo Domingo por rebeldes dominicanos en 1809 y 1821 respectivamente). Esta vez, Duarte creía firmemente que los dominicanos ahora tendrían que levantarse en armas contra el feroz poder de los haitianos. Al éxito de este objetivo, la nación recién independizada se organizaría sobre la base de la institucionalidad de la democracia representativa. Habiendo formalizado estos ideales, el ilustrado Duarte regresó a su patria en 1833. [2] De Barcelona llegó a Puerto Rico , luego a Santo Tomás , y de esta isla, a su país natal.
Con su regreso, Duarte regresó a su ciudad natal de Santo Domingo, donde se dedicó a poner a prueba sus ideales recién formados, al mismo tiempo que trabajaba en el negocio de su padre. Según el historiador Orlando Inoa, respaldado por registros de la logia denominada Constante Unión No. 8, una logia que fue fundada a través del Gran Oriente de Haití, Duarte se convirtió en masón a la edad legal de 21 años. Se dice que fue designado como el arquitecto decorador de esta logia. (Algunos historiadores creen que algunos de sus colaboradores clave también eran miembros de esta logia). Incluso se había unido a la Guardia Nacional de Haití , ampliando su entrenamiento militar, así como estudiando las tácticas militares de las fuerzas de ocupación. Finalmente alcanzó el rango de coronel .
Lleva una intensa vida social que le permite entrar en contacto con muchos sectores importantes de las comunidades urbanas. Presenció matrimonios, padrinazgos, bautizos y asistió a reuniones de carácter cultural. Esta experiencia de sociedad es la que lo movió a percatarse de que dentro de la población existe un sentimiento patriótico que rechaza la presencia haitiana en el país. Su mérito, no sólo como patriota, sino también como organizador político, radica fundamentalmente en el hecho de que conocía bien el momento histórico que se acumulaba en la sociedad dominicana en esa época; la renuencia de sus capas más decisivas a aceptar el dominio haitiano, que para entonces se estaba volviendo más despótico y rebelde. [17]
Sus ideas encontraron mayor eco entre la clase media. A la par que cultivaba su espíritu, Duarte no dejó de transmitir los conocimientos adquiridos a la juventud de su ciudad natal. Durante cuatro años consecutivos, de 1834 a 1838, ofreció clases de lengua y matemáticas a un grupo de jóvenes humildes que acudían todas las tardes al almacén situado en la calle La Atarazana. La popularidad del joven maestro fue creciendo entre gran parte de la población. Muchos de sus discípulos empezaron a sentir un ferviente apego por él. En poco tiempo el almacén de La Atarazana se convirtió en la sede de una junta revolucionaria. La palabra de Duarte ha calado en el corazón de un grupo de jóvenes idealistas y poco a poco las voluntades de todos se han fundido en una aspiración común: la de separar la parte dominicana de la isla de la haitiana. Duarte lanzó la idea y fue recibida con entusiasmo por aquellos de sus discípulos que más se habían destacado por su fervor por los principios que predicaba y los que dieron testimonio de su fidelidad más abnegada.
Pero lo que pudo ser una reacción tradicionalista en aquellos jóvenes, gracias a Duarte, se encaminó hacia la formación de un núcleo democrático-revolucionario. Quizá la clave estuvo en el hecho de que todos ellos eran jóvenes. El repudio a la opresión, sin compromiso con el pasado, los hizo receptivos a las prédicas de Duarte. El conglomerado de amigos, unidos bajo su guía en la actividad de estudio y reflexión intelectual, fue el antecedente de la organización revolucionaria formada años después. Estas actividades se fortalecieron con la llegada al país del sacerdote peruano Gaspar Hernández, nombrado párroco de San Carlos, con alta formación intelectual, quien organizó un grupo de estudios de filosofía en 1842. Sin embargo, Hernández no tuvo ninguna responsabilidad en la dirección patriótica y revolucionaria del grupo de jóvenes, ya que era partidario del retorno del dominio español. [18]
El 16 de julio de 1838, en el paraje de la calle Arzobispo Nouel, (frente a la Iglesia del Carmen), Duarte y otros establecieron una sociedad patriótica secreta llamada La Trinitaria , que ayudó a socavar la ocupación haitiana. Bautizado con el nombre de la Santísima Trinidad , este movimiento, como lo describió su hermana Rosa, fue referido como un movimiento juvenil, debido a que la mayoría de los miembros eran muy jóvenes. Algunos de sus primeros miembros incluyeron a Juan Isidro Pérez , Pedro Alejandro Pina , Jacinto de la Concha , Félix María Ruiz, José María Serra, Benito González, Felipe Alfau y Juan Nepomuceno Ravelo. La Trinitaria fue una organización que no tenía precedentes en el país: el primer grupo revolucionario animado por una doctrina política, con un programa y un sistema organizativo. Su razón de ser radicaba en hacer realidad el objetivo que había predicado Duarte: derrocar el dominio haitiano para fundar un Estado independiente. Como se puede leer en el juramento, la entidad se organizó en torno a la fidelidad a la persona de Duarte. Las enseñanzas del padre fundador resumían la doctrina y el programa de la sociedad. El movimiento trinitario, decía su hermana Rosa Duarte, era conocido como la “revolución de los muchachos” por la juventud de casi todos. Los conservadores los veían con desconfianza y burla por su idealismo desinteresado. Acuñaron el neologismo despectivo “filorios”, palabra que venía de los filósofos, que quería denotar que eran románticos carentes de realismo. [19]
Contrariamente a esta visión, Duarte dotó a La Trinitaria de los recursos prácticos y organizativos necesarios para alcanzar sus objetivos. Se puede asociar a La Trinitaria con la tradición masónica y con las organizaciones libertarias de los países mediterráneos que propugnaban la implantación de regímenes liberales, como los carbonarios de Italia. Su principal rasgo distintivo era el secreto que debía guiar las actividades. Estaba dotada de una organización celular, según la cual cada núcleo de conspiradores debía existir como un cuerpo independiente del resto. Se concebía, pues, como una cadena de conspiradores que convergían en los primeros iniciados: cada uno de ellos debía crear una célula con dos miembros más y, a su vez, cada uno de éstos creaba otras células con la incorporación de dos nuevos adeptos. Pero cada miembro sólo debía conocer los miembros de las células a las que pertenecía. [19]
Más tarde, Duarte y otros fundaron una sociedad llamada La Filantrópica , que tenía una presencia más pública, buscando difundir ideas veladas de liberación a través de escenarios teatrales. Este grupo se encargó de la paz, la unión y la amistad. Algunas de sus obras incluyeron: Roma libre del dramaturgo italiano Vittorio Alfieri , La viuda de Padilla de Francisco Martínez de la Rosa , Un día del año 23 en Cádiz de Eugenio de Ochoa . El gobernador haitiano, Bernard-Philippe-Alexis Carrié, al principio, no se mostró sospechoso, por lo que ignoró las representaciones. Pero el público acudió al teatro con tal entusiasmo y los actores provocaron tal delirio en la audiencia que Alexis Carrié fue alertado por sus espías. El primer impulso de las autoridades de ocupación fue suspender las actividades del movimiento y cerrar el teatro. [20] Después de varios intentos fallidos, los trinitarios insatisfechos fundaron La Dramática. En esta nueva sociedad, todos los miembros se dedicaron a la actuación . [17] Muchos de los habitantes disfrutaban de estas actividades y al mismo tiempo aprendían a través de la representación de obras teatrales que dirigían, en las que escenificaban la lucha de un pueblo por liberarse de un gobierno opresor. [20]
Los años 1842-1843 son definitorios para la creación de condiciones propicias que culminaron con el momento para la independencia dominicana. Fenómenos naturales catastróficos como el terremoto que afectó a Haití el 7 de mayo de 1842 y que dejó a la ciudad de Cabo Haitiano en el norte prácticamente destruida y que afectó por igual a Santiago y otras ciudades norteñas de la zona oriental. Se registraron cerca de 5,000 muertos en dicho terremoto y acusaciones de incapacidad e insensibilidad de las autoridades en el manejo de dicho evento natural que influyeron en el inicio de su deterioro político que ya había comenzado desde antes. [21] Añadido como catástrofe, se produjo un incendio en Puerto Príncipe que la dejó en ruinas en enero de 1843, y se combinó un malestar político que venía ganando terreno con el desabastecimiento y la crisis económico-comercial que lo acompañó. [21] El desgaste político de Jean-Pierre Boyer produce rupturas al interior de Haití y también en la zona oriental de la isla con movimientos separatistas que buscaban derrocar a Boyer por un lado, y por el otro, buscaban hacer aprovechar la oportunidad para lograr la independencia de la parte española de la isla.
Hubo coincidencias y diferencias en los propósitos. [21] Para Duarte, era necesario un estremecimiento, ya que los Trinitarios no lograban trasladar su influencia del círculo de los jóvenes al sector alto urbano. Esto les permitió pasar a desviar sus atenciones hacia un nuevo movimiento: La Reforma. Al enterarse de la conspiración encabezada por diputados liberales depuestos en Les Cayes y otros puntos del Sur, dispuso que Matías Ramón Mella se trasladara a esa región y llegara a acuerdos con los enemigos de Boyer. Mella cumplió con su deber, y tras una breve visita, regresó a Santo Domingo un día antes de la insurrección iniciada el 27 de enero de 1843. Después de las operaciones militares, Boyer renunció el 13 de marzo de 1843. [22]
Casi dos semanas después llegó a Santo Domingo la noticia de la caída de Boyer. A raíz de ello, una movilización de los trinitarios y de los liberales haitianos residentes en la ciudad se lanzó a las calles en repudio al despotismo y aclamó el triunfo dominicano. Los conservadores, sin embargo, se mostraron molestos por esta unión, acusando a Duarte de ser “colombiano”, en alusión al anterior líder independentista, José Núñez de Cáceres. En respuesta a esto, Duarte enfatizó con fuerza que lo que se buscaba en ese momento no era la independencia, sino la Reforma. (Duarte, que quería llevar a cabo su plan de manera discreta, aludió a esto con el propósito de no hablar públicamente de las verdaderas condiciones de la proclamación de la independencia). [22]
Mientras tanto, las autoridades haitianas de la ciudad, encabezadas por el gobernador Carrié, se opusieron al movimiento popular y se produjo un tiroteo en la Plaza de Armas (hoy Parque Colón) cuando la multitud se acercó a su residencia para exigir su renuncia. Muchos manifestantes se escondieron, mientras que otros, como Duarte, marcharon hacia San Cristóbal , donde se encontraban importantes conspiradores. En esa localidad, recibieron refuerzos de otros lugares del sur, lo que provocó que Carrié renunciara al cargo. Étienne Desgrotte, el líder de los liberales haitianos en Santo Domingo, fue nombrado gobernador. Tras esto, se formó una junta popular a cargo de Alcius Ponthieux, quien asignó a Duarte, además de Pedro Alejandro Piña y Manuel Jiménes , como miembros de la junta. A Duarte se le encomendó la misión de expandir la obra a las localidades del este. [23]
Pronto surgieron divergencias entre los liberales haitianos y los liberales dominicanos. Con motivo de la celebración de elecciones para la designación de representantes legislativos compitieron tres tendencias: los conservadores dominicanos, los liberales dominicanos y los liberales haitianos. A pesar de la poca relación que los trinitarios tenían con el pueblo, triunfaron en esas elecciones porque encarnaban el deseo de libertad de los sectores más conscientes de la población dominicana. Además, días antes se había enviado a las autoridades haitianas la solicitud de que los documentos oficiales se redactaran en español, ya que los dominicanos no podían ser tratados como un pueblo conquistado. Esto alertó a los liberales haitianos sobre lo que perseguían los dominicanos. [24]
Pese a la pugna entre liberales y conservadores, algunos de estos últimos entendieron que era necesario llegar a un acuerdo con los trinitarios, pues ellos solos carecían de fuerza para lograr una ruptura con Haití. Para ello se realizaron reuniones entre Duarte y personalidades conservadoras, en busca de la unidad de acción. Los conservadores exigían concesiones contrarias a la soberanía dominicana que Duarte consideraba inadmisibles, por lo que las negociaciones llegaron a un punto muerto. Sin embargo, los trinitarios siguieron intentando recabar mayor apoyo de diversos sectores y no renunciaron a la unidad, siempre y cuando se mantuviera el objetivo de un Estado plenamente independiente. El propio Duarte, en los trabajos de la Junta Popular, logró incorporar a los hermanos Ramón y Pedro Santana, dos de los terratenientes más influyentes de la región oriental, reconocidos por su oposición al yugo haitiano. Duarte habló con Ramón Santana, de inclinaciones patrióticas, quien declinó la propuesta de ser nombrado coronel por entender que ese cargo debía corresponder a su hermano Pedro, con vocación de mando. Duarte envió después a Sánchez a ratificar el acuerdo, pues era amigo personal de los hermanos Santana. Este episodio, sin duda cierto, demuestra que, a pesar de la disputa entre trinitarios y franceses, se llegaron a acuerdos entre algunos de estos últimos y el movimiento de los primeros. [25]
Esta alianza de propósitos, sin embargo, no duró mucho. Los verdaderos motivos de Duarte habían llegado a oídos de Charles Rivière-Hérard , quien respondió con el llamado a la represión de los revolucionarios del lado oriental de la isla. Las luchas iniciadas a raíz de estas diferencias produjeron la reacción del nuevo gobierno haitiano y bajo el mando de Hérard, lo lanzó contra los trinitarios, comandando dos batallones que lo acompañaron desde la ciudad de Puerto Príncipe. [21]
Durante el mes de julio de 1843, las fuerzas militares del Gobierno haitiano intensificaron la persecución contra los trinitarios. El 24 de julio de 1843, la residencia de la familia de Juan Pablo Duarte y la de su tío José Díez, fueron allanadas por soldados haitianos que intentaban localizar al líder trinitario. La requisa estuvo encabezada por el comandante haitiano Hipólito Franquil, quien, según Rosa Duarte, "estaba acompañado de una gran tropa de la cual una parte rodeó la cuadra y la otra entró en la casa dividida en dos filas de dos en segundo plano; una línea de soldados armados entró por el dormitorio principal a las habitaciones interiores; y la otra se extendió desde la calle por la sala hasta los corrales". Ese día, Duarte y varios de sus compañeros lograron escapar saltando por los patios de las residencias vecinas hasta llegar a la casa del señor Teodoro Ariza. Posteriormente se trasladaron a Pajarito, (actual Villa Duarte, Santo Domingo Este ), donde se refugiaron en la casa del ciudadano español Pascual C. López. Partieron de allí a las 10 de la noche de ese mismo día. [26] Eventualmente, Duarte había recibido información de uno de sus "perseguidores arrepentidos" de que su cabeza tenía precio y por ello, la persona que le dio la confianza le sugirió que abandonara Santo Domingo. Según el informante, el gobierno haitiano dio tres mil pesos y la charretera de coronel "para el líder de la revolución", pero muchos creyeron que el monto de la oferta era bajo. Duarte y Pedro Alejandrino Pina salieron de la residencia de Pedro Cote, en compañía de Juan Alejandro Acosta y otro amigo que Rosa Duarte no identifica. [26] Finalmente, el 2 de agosto de 1843, Duarte decidió abandonar la isla rumbo a Curazao debido a su comportamiento insurgente, donde fue sorprendido por la noticia de la muerte de su padre el 25 de noviembre de ese año. Entonces, Duarte le dice a su madre que venda el negocio familiar para financiar la revolución separatista, a lo que su madre se opone en un principio.
En su ausencia, Francisco del Rosario Sánchez tuvo que tomar las riendas del movimiento separatista y hacer una alianza con el sector conservador encabezado por Tomás Bobadilla y Buenaventura Báez, resultando en el Manifiesto del 16 de enero de 1844. Todo esto, junto con la ayuda de muchos que querían deshacerse de los haitianos que gobernaban a los dominicanos, triunfó, ya que los dominicanos expulsaron con éxito a los haitianos del país, lo que llevó a la proclamación de la independencia el 27 de febrero de 1844. De acuerdo con los deseos de Duarte, se estableció un nuevo gobierno republicano, una vez más libre del control extranjero, y el Santo Domingo Independiente pasó a llamarse oficialmente República Dominicana .
Con el propósito de preparar el regreso de Duarte, se formó una comisión, encabezada por Juan Nepomuceno Ravelo, encargada de traer al patricio de regreso a su patria. Cuatro días después, el 15 de marzo de 1844, Duarte entró en el Puerto de Santo Domingo , donde fue aclamado por el pueblo. Con él traía armas y material bélico que pudo conseguir en un viaje a Curazao. Su presencia causó gran alegría entre sus seguidores y fue recibido por una procesión que le rindió honores de jefe de Estado. El arzobispo Tomás Portes Infante saludó al patricio con estas efusivas palabras: « ¡Salve al Padre de la Patria! » . [27] Duarte fue proclamado General en Jefe de los Ejércitos de la República, pero el Gobierno lo nombró General de Brigada y Miembro de la Junta Central de Gobierno. Comenzó a trabajar en su proyecto de elaborar una Constitución, que dejó inconcluso, para incorporarse al ejército y enfrentarse a los haitianos, en la Batalla de Azua , el 19 de marzo de 1844. Durante el desarrollo de esta batalla comenzaron las contradicciones entre Santana y Duarte, ya que Santana, persona muy influyente por su condición de ganadero, tenía poca experiencia militar y por primera vez debía enfrentarse a un ejército tan poderoso. Consideró imperativo obtener un rotundo éxito militar contra los haitianos, y pidió ser destinado al frente sur, donde fue destinado como general asociado a Santana. Ya en Baní, Duarte abogó por una táctica ofensiva que fue rechazada por Santana, quien siempre se caracterizó por adoptar posturas militares defensivas. Los oficiales subordinados de Duarte lo incitaron a tomar la ofensiva por su cuenta, desconociendo la posición de Santana, pero él prefirió seguir las instrucciones de la Junta de Gobierno. Ante las desavenencias con Santana, el 4 de abril la Junta lo citó de nuevo a Santo Domingo, en evidente desaprobación de su posición. [28] A pesar de ello, Santana derrotó a los haitianos en el desarrollo de esta batalla. A la ciudad capital llegaron noticias de que los haitianos avanzaban hacia la zona del Cibao . El 30 de marzo de 1844 se produjo la Batalla de Santiago y tras largas horas de combate, los dominicanos liderados por José María Imbert , Achille Michell, Fernando Valerio , Francisco Caba, Bartolo Mejía y José Joaquín Puello , derrotaron a las tropas haitianas. [27]
Aunque Duarte fue apoyado por muchos como candidato a la presidencia y Mella incluso lo declaró presidente, Duarte se negó argumentando que solo aceptaría el cargo si la elección mayoritaria de los dominicanos votaba en su favor. En cambio, Tomás Bobadilla asumió el cargo. Duarte fue apoyado por muchos como candidato a la presidencia de la recién nacida República. Mella quería que Duarte simplemente se declarara presidente. Duarte nunca renunció a los principios de democracia y equidad por los que vivía, solo aceptaría si era votado por la mayoría del pueblo dominicano. [ cita requerida ] Duarte tenía un concepto definido de la nación dominicana y sus miembros. Su concepción de una república era la de un patriota republicano , abolicionista , anticolonial , liberal y progresista .
En esa época redactó una constitución que establece claramente que la bandera dominicana puede cobijar a todas las razas, sin excluir ni dar predominio a ninguna. En su proyecto de Constitución, Duarte escribió que la Independencia Nacional era fuente de libertades y planteó la necesidad de que los dominicanos tuvieran una ley fundamental, para poder gobernar. El pensamiento constitucional de Duarte expresaba su concepción más avanzada respecto a la organización del Estado como órgano supremo del poder.
Una de las disposiciones más importantes contenidas en su proyecto de Constitución dice, entre otras cosas: [29]
-Ningún poder en la tierra es ilimitado, ni siquiera el de la ley-
-Todo poder dominicano está y debe estar siempre limitado por la ley y ésta por la justicia, que consiste en dar a cada uno lo que por derecho le corresponde-
Otra parte muy importante es la que se refiere a los Poderes del Estado, cuya división concibe, en forma tripartita en tres partes, poniendo al Poder Municipal, junto a los poderes Legislativo, Judicial y Ejecutivo. Esta disposición revela el espíritu de sensatez y justicia que siempre acompañó a Duarte. Se pretendía impedir que los gobernantes hicieran uso de un poder ilimitado, que pudiera perjudicar a las mayorías. [29]
Las ideas constitucionales plasmadas en su Proyecto de Constitución reflejan la influencia recibida por Duarte de las ideologías europeas de los siglos XVIII y XIX. Las concepciones expresadas en este proyecto aluden a que Duarte conocía las obras “ El contrato social ”, de Jean-Jacques Rousseau y “ El espíritu de las leyes ” de Montesquieu . Además, pensadores estadounidenses que inspiraron la Constitución de los Estados Unidos de 1787 influyeron en la formación de los ideales de Duarte, como Thomas Jefferson y Thomas Paine .
While these events were taking place, differences within the government continued to develop, as the group of conservatives continued their conspiracies for new protectorate plans. The Trinitarios, motivated by the fear that this situation caused them, requested that Duarte be appointed General in Chief of the Army, as well as other important positions for some Trinitarios. Thanks to the conservative hegemony in the Central Government Board, on March 8 that body had taken the resolution to partially adopt a plan that had been outlined in the capital of Haiti by the consul general of France and several Dominican representatives when they were participating in the Constituent Assembly that had been held as a result of the triumph of La Reforma. The Levausser plan stipulated the appointment of a French governor as executive of the Dominican State, with which the country would remain in the status of French protectorate. It also stipulated the cession to France in perpetuity of the Samaná peninsula and active aid to France in the event that it decided to reconquer its former colony in the west of the island. The justification for this resolution was based on the Haitian military threat. In the months of March to May, the conservative leaders placed all their expectations on French aid.[28] Francisco del Rosario Sánchez foresaw that several of the conservatives could lose their lives in the movement and warned them of the scope of the plan so that they would have time to seek asylum in the French consulate, as several later did.[30]
The Trinitarios had initiated the plan to overthrow the members of the Central Government Board, at the end of May 1844, because they understood that they endangered national sovereignty. As part of the project, on May 31, 1844, Juan Pablo Duarte and a group of his followers began a plan with the purpose of taking power in the nascent Dominican Republic, because it had fallen into the hands of the conservative groups represented by the President of the Central Government Board, Tomás Bobadilla, who favored the idea that the Nation would become a protectorate of France.[30]
That same day, Duarte and a group of followers met with the garrison of the Ozama Fortress, and managed to get 56 active officers to sign a document addressed to the Central Government Board, to request that Duarte be named General in Chief of the Army, and the other Trinitarios, including the heroes Francisco del Rosario Sánchez and Matías Ramón Mella, were named Division Generals or Brigadier Generals.[30] The only one who was accepted for promotion was José Joaquín Puello, however some Seybanos along with the friends and supporters of Major General Santana, outraged by the requests, spoke out against it, causing the Board to postpone the Duartistas' request. On June 1, 1844, Duarte would rejoin the Junta, now headed by President José María Caminero, and signed the request for protection and recognition of independence by France. The new request for French protectorate no longer included the transfer of the Samaná peninsula in perpetuity, instead it was replaced by a provisional occupation by French forces of Samaná bay if necessary.
Secretly, however, Duarte and Puello formed a conspiracy that would stage a coup to overthrow José María Caminero. Duarte and Puello had the support of between 150 to 200 officers who had been former slaves. These freedman joined their entourage because they were convinced that their freedom was threatened by the Board after the Duartistas told them that supporters of the protectorate wanted to sell the country to the French and restore slavery. Duarte was in a position to carry out the coup, since Brigadier General Ramón Santana, who was feared by Puello's supporters, was in a critical state of health, and in addition, the French warship Naiade was absent.
On June 31, 1844, in the morning, Duarte gave a speech to the troops gathered in the arsenal of the Ozama Fortress and the officers of his General Staff where he proclaimed Puello as brigadier general and, in turn, proclaimed Duarte as inspector general of the Dominican troops; General Puello took charge of the city and moved to the Junta upon hearing the shouts: "Down with Bobadilla!" Down Caminero! Death to the traitors! "Death to Delmonte, Javier Abreu, Francisco Ruiz and Báez!" The commander of the department of Santo Domingo, Manuel Jimenes, decided to appear before the Board to obtain from it, voluntarily or by force, the ratification of the coup along with the expulsion of Caminero and Bobadilla, forcing them at the same time to the signing of a ban list. Duarte and Puello then led twenty officers to the Junta and there, in the name of the people and the troops, they imposed their appointments, obtaining, almost without resistance, the sanction of everything they had just done.
This coup d'état was called by Eustache de Saint-Denys as "18 Dominican Brumaire", referring to the coup d'état of 18 Brumaire led by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799. This new Junta, now headed by President Manuel Jimenes, would introduce Pérez and Pina among its members. Saint-Denys, in a letter of 1 July, addressed to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, François Guizot, would communicate that: "Although apparently directed against France, the coup d'état of the 9th has in no way changed my position here." Duarte was now in control of the government.
Sánchez was appointed President and other members of the Cabinet were Pedro Alejandro Pina, Manuel María Valverde, Juan Isidro Pérez and Duarte himself. Now, the task of the Trinitarians was focused on discarding the influence of Santana and fighting against the actions of the group made up of conservatives. This was not possible because Santana had great influence in the government. Pedro Santana, aware of the military coup, wrote to the Central Government Board, requesting a medical license to retire from the army, on the pretext that he was suffering from an illness.[27]
Meanwhile, Buenaventura Báez and other conspirators communicated frequently with Santana and made a deal to get him approved for sick leave. General Sánchez was appointed assistant chief of Santana, but he was unable to fulfill that mission. Santana began preparing his plot and organized troops made up of his friends. He went to the city of Santo Domingo, with the purpose of "restoring order." After these events, on July 4, 1844, in the city of Santiago, Mella, who was Commander of the Department of Cibao, oblivious to what was happening in Azua with Santana, proclaimed Juan Pablo Duarte, President of the Republic. Duarte said that he would only accept that position if he was elected in democratic elections, in which all the peoples participated.[27]
Duarte continued to Puerto Plata on July 8, where he was again proclaimed president by the people and the army. The strong support for the liberals was a product of the fact that commercial agriculture had developed more in the Cibao region than in the rest of the country, and therefore the urban sectors in favor of a democratic society were stronger.[31]
Meanwhile, Santana was approaching the capital city with an army made up of more than 2,000 soldiers. The French consul threatened the members of the Junta with intervention if they confronted Santana militarily. Some soldiers were pressured and Colonel Puello, Chief of the Plaza, denied support for the Trinitarios. After Santana's entry with his troops, he rallied his supporters. Colonel Antonio Abad Alfau harangued the soldiers, who received the soldier under the cry: Down with the Junta! Long live General Santana! [27] On July 15, 1844, Santana met with the members of the Governing Board to present their purposes. When Sánchez refused to cooperate, Santana, in revenge, ordered Sánchez's arrest. A month later, in a document drafted by Bobadilla and Caminero, the Junta chaired by Santana declared, among other things:[27]
To punish all the authors of the sedition, headed by General Juna Pablo Duarte (...) Declares that Brigadier Generals Duarte, R. Mella, Fco. del Rosario Sánchez, Commanders Pedro Alejandro Pina, Gregorio del Valle, Captain JJ Illas and Mr. Juan Isidro Pérez... They have been traitors and unfaithful to the Homeland and as such unworthy of the jobs and charges they held, of those who were deposed and dismissed from this day on.
The first deportees by Santana were: Mella, Pina and JJ Illas, a Venezuelan poet, friend of Duarte. Duarte was arrested in the city of Puerto Plata, in the house of Mr. Pedro Dubocq. Next to him were Juan Evangelista Jiménez and other companions. On September 2, 1844 in a ship captained by Juan Bautista Cambiaso. Upon arriving in the capital, the Patrician was locked up in La Torre del Homenaje, (present-day Ozama Fortress).[27] The imprisoned revolutionaries were then sent to exile in Hamburg. He spent nineteen days in the city, where he interacted with members of Freemasonry, an institution which belinged a few years before, as was common among people of certain educational level in the country.[32] His short stay in Germany can be attributed to the fact that he was interested in being as close to his homeland as posible. After a brief stay in Hamburg, on November 30, 1844, Duarte moved to the Caribbean island of Saint Thomas, where he rejected offers to enter the service of Haiti or Spain to oppose Santana. From there, he moved to La Guaira, Venezuela, where his entire family, now plunged into misery, had also been exiled by Santana.
In these first years of Duarte's arrival in Venezuela, the country is extremely convulsed and is torn between various political interests: on one hand, there were military veterans of the Venezuelan War of Independence who exerted strong pressure to take charge of power after the belief that the mere fact of their participation in the war made them worthy of this, such as José Antonio Páez (first President of the Republic), Carlos Soublette and the brothers José Tadeo Monagas and José Gregorio Monagas. On the other hand, the Liberal Party, newly formed and beginning a strong fight to take over power, were the merchants and intellectuals of the civil sphere who promoted the ideas of the development of the country according to the newly released liberal ideas - especially in the economic sphere, through which they presented themselves as the most suitable sector to govern the destinies of the nation; Prominent among them were the intellectuals Antonio Leocadio Guzmán and Tomás Lander, founders of the party and controversial propagandists of liberal ideas. Finally, the landowners, responsible for agricultural and livestock production as the basis of the economy of the time, also fought to gain power, who became known as Conservatives and also pushed to take charge of power based on the authority generated by their economic power.[33]
In addition, the denominations of Conservative or Liberal did not have any radical difference of thought in Venezuela at the time because, on occasions, the so-called Conservatives adopted measures so liberal that even the Liberal leaders tended to criticize them and confront them publicly, just as the case of the laws of April 10, 1834 and the “Wait and Quit” law – dictated by so-called Conservative governments – which left commercial transactions in the hands of the parties without effective intervention from the State, which is why they went to ruin a considerable number of landowners and merchants from either side. This strong political confrontation was expressed in popular demonstrations and protests in the streets of the main cities and in the fields. In the cities, the constants were arrests, persecutions and confiscations of property and, in the countryside, uprisings, riots and guerrillas, which caused tempers to flare up and keep the country in permanent anxiety, to the point that it could It can be stated, without fear of being wrong, that throughout the 19th century Venezuela experienced a single civil war, with some, very few, moments of calm. Faced with such political instability and in his condition as a foreigner and exile, in other words, by the Dominican government that at times acted as an ally of Venezuela, Duarte decided not to commit himself – much less to his family – and go into the deepest part. from the country. He directs his course towards the town of San Carlos de Río Negro (today a Municipality of the Amazonas state) with the clear intention of going unnoticed.[33]
In February 1845, while in Caracas, he received the news of the execution of María Trinidad Sánchez. Assuming guilt for this death, and rejecting the idea of encouraging a civil war, Duarte disappears from public life, entering the Venezuelan jungle. After writing his book La Cartera Del Proscripto, he settled in the city of Angostura, where he lost all contact with friends and family for more than fifteen years. He was apparently suffering from a state of chronic depression. At one point, family members left him for dead. Little is known about his life in the interior of Venezuela, although he established relationships with figures of the radical liberal current of that country. He spent most of his time in a very remote area, El Apure, completely disconnected from what was happening in the world. It is known that he led a poor life, unconcerned with material aspects, interacting with the priest Juan Bautista Sangenis (Saint Gervi), who taught him sacred history and encouraged him to take priestly habits, which he did not accept, since he believed that he had not yet completed his mission in his homeland.[34]
His friendship with the priest began to change him. His presence in those solitudes impressed the missionary, who was moved by his period of the exile. A deep friendship was born from their conversations. Duarte's mysticism was strengthened by contact with the elevated spirit of the priest, well versed in religion and politics. Little by little, Sangenis convinced him to abandon his isolation and move to a less inhospitable place. Around 1852, when Duarte moved to the then Apure, he met with Venezuelan intellectuals, politicians and soldiers dissatisfied with the government had gathered. He traveled through that area of extensive plains with prolonged periods of rain that flooded everything, wreaking havoc with malaria and yellow fever.[35]Later, Duarte settled in Achaguas, a city with buildings made of mud and bahareque cane, on the banks of the Apure River, where he remained for some years. There he began a new life, among friends with whom he conversed in Portuguese. In Achaguas he had another faithful friend and protector, Marcelino Muñoz, of great prestige in the region, a defender, like Sangenis, of the demands to transform Venezuelan society, dominated by an elite of landowners. Duarte compromised with him until 1856, when Muñoz suddenly passed. At his funeral, Duarte delivered an elegy reproduced in the pamphlet “Posthumous Honors of Mr. Marcelino Muñoz,” included as an appendix in the booklet “Contributions to a Bibliography on the State of Apure,” written by Argenis Méndez Echenique.[35]
After the death of Muñez, perhaps fleeing the devastation caused by the Federal War, he moved to the capital city of San Fernando de Apure. He visited other towns on the Apureña plains, probably accompanying Saingenis in his ministry, who upon confirming his faith and attachment to religious and philosophical disciplines, invited him to embrace an ecclesiastical career. The answer was communicated by Duarte in a letter to his family: "He wanted me to dedicate myself to the Church, but the affairs of my country, which I hoped to conclude, prevented me from taking that status." The letter rejoiced the family, who were finally relieved to have heard from their lost relative after so many years.[35]Rosa Duarte's diary does not record anything between 1846 and 1862. She was surely not interested in returning to the country under the conditions of conservative hegemony, when politics did not correspond to her ideals. He was the only one of the Trinitarios expelled in 1844 who did not return after the amnesty of 1848, and his memory was erased from public consciousness or was surrounded by an image stigmatized by the accusations made against him by Santana and Bobadilla.[34]
Duarte's family in Venezuela did not do too badly, they lived and worked in an affluent area.[citation needed] Duarte's cousin Manuel Diez became vice president of the country and helped shelter his kinsman.[citation needed] Duarte's family was known to produce candles, this was a major retail and wholesale product since light bulbs for lighting had not been invented yet. While not luxuriously rich an income was available for the Duarte's. [citation needed] . Duarte even though he and his family were already by this time residents of the country, still felt ambivalent about openly participating in the country's political life, all this despite the fact that the aforementioned cousin Manuel Antonio Díez from the vice presidency, went on to become President of Venezuela in an Ad Tempore capacity.
Duarte travels in Venezuela involved studying the indigenous people and learning from the black and mulatto communities as well as observing as much as he could of the Venezuela of his time. Duarte was an extremely educated man, fluent in many languages, he was a former soldier and teacher. These abilities helped him survive and thrive in those places he travelled. It also marked him as an outsider, given the fact that he was of Caribbean descent, he probably sounded much different than most of the Spanish speakers around him.[citation needed] However, Santo Domingo and the Republic that he had helped father were also highly likely always close to his heart and his mind. So he was very much a man divided, excited and deeply moved by the current surroundings, people's and events around him, however very much thinking about his beloved land and people whom he sacrificed so much for. A man in a contemplative mood, wounded by the drastic expulsion such as he suffered, would have very little time for a long term wife, children or true stability.
Within the 17 years of the First Republic, the nation was ravaged with political and economic instability. The Haitians attempted on numerous occasions to regain control over the Dominican part of the island, but were defeated again and again. Political power passed to the conservative group of hateros and former Frenchified boyerista officials, thanks to the control of the presidency of the Central Government Board by Bobadilla and of the Liberation Army by General Santana, who ruled dictatorially in various periods. As time progressed, the constant power struggles between Santana and Buenaventura Báez, who gradually was revealed as more cunning and no less annexationist than the former, set the stage for a period of political and economic chaos.[16]
Between 1853 and 1857, Santana and Báez engaged in a series of political confrontations that eventually reached its breaking point with the outbreak of the Cibaeño Revolution during Báez's second term in office. All the while, both would continue to propose that the Dominican Republic be annexed to a foreign power, with Santana choosing Spain, and Báez subjecting the United States. With Báez's overthrow in 1858, Santana once again president. But by now, the nation was on the brink of collapse due to the heavy spending of the war, and the bankrupt treasury left behind from Báez administration. All of this, in addition to fears of a renewed Haitian invasion, led to Santana to seek out the proposals from Queen Isabella II of Spain.
Sánchez and Mella, however, did not abandon their liberal positions and patriotic essentials. Their relationships with prominent conservatives was the price to remain in the interior of the country and influence so that things could take the best possible direction. Duarte, however, saw things differently. He believed it was impossible to accept any type of agreement with what he described as "faction." According to a letter from Juan Isidro Pérez, Duarte was disappointed in Sánchez, whom he had placed in charge following his 1843 exile, due to reaching an agreement with Santana. For Duarte, patriotism of the people was the only possible cause, therefore he refused to conceive the existence of the parties, only recognizing the opposition of traitors. Referring to Báez and his early inclination in favor of the United States, he wrote in 1865:[36]
In Santo Domingo, there is only one town that wants to be and has proclaimed itself independent of all foreign power, and a miserable fraction that always has spoken out against this law, against this need of the Dominican people, always achieving by gave of his intrigues and sordid dealings to take over the situation.
Duarte preferred complete isolation to any concession. Politics had to be guided by noble purposes or it would be distorted. Consequently, politics implied high ideals, reflection and action for the benefit of the community. Above all things, for Duarte, politics was equivalent to patriotism. His notion of a free country, which was synthesized in the willingness to sacrifice in favor of the principles and the well-being of the people, was the opposite of the common-mind considered as politics: the realm of the struggle for power.[37]
Although many aspects of his life in Venezuela remain unknown, it is certain that Duarte did not abandon the disposition to action. When sensing danger approaching his country, he did not hesitate to present himself. It was when he learned of the annexation of the Dominican Republic to Spain in March 1861, news that he received more than a year later in the depths of the Venezuelan jungle, and moved to Caracas in August 1862. During the following months, he remained mainly in expectation. It can be deduced that he considered that his prolonged absence from the county is what caused him not to take initiatives. Some even argue that Duarte felt regret for the country, since apparently the majority of the population accepted Santana's betrayal.[37] In a brief letter, he wrote:[38]
The sufferings of my brothers were extremely sensitive to me, but it was more painful to see that the fruit of so many sacrifices, so much suffering, was the loss of the independence of that country so dear to my heart, and instead of accepting the opulence that degraded us, I accepted with joy the bitter disappointment that I knew awaited me the day when my short services would no longer be believed useful or necessary to individuals.
It was when the Dominican Restoration War broke out, in August 1863, when Duarte started moving. His sister's diary was stated that on December 20, 1863, he moved to Caracas with his uncle Mariano Diez. As soon as he found out that the people had begun the fight against Spanish domination, Duarte formed a revolutionary center in Caracas. His brother Vicente Celestino, his uncle Mariano Diez, the young poet Manuel Rodríguez Objío and Candelario Oquendo joined him. Several Venezuelans were interested in supporting the Dominican cause, those who stood out between Blas and Manuel Bruzual the latter known as The Fearless Soldier, exponent of the radical positions of liberalism. President Juan Crisóstomo Falcón received Duarte and promised him help, despite the difficult situation in which Venezuela found itself, after several years of federal war. Despite Falcón's good disposition, the help received by Duarte was minimal, since the matter was left in the hands of the vice president, Antonio Guzmán Blanco, (future autocrat of Venezuela), who was not interested in helping the Dominicans. Duarte reflected that In matters of intrigue, Venezuelans were no different from the Dominicans. Apparently he only received a thousand pesos from the Venezuelan government. Many Dominicans came to stand at Duarte's orders, but he could not do anything due to lack of funds. Therefore, without having managed to gather resources, as was his wish, together with the four aforementioned companions, he was able to embark in Curaçao in route to his homeland in March 1864. Enduring a long voyage on the Gold Munster schooner, they returned to Guaira and passed through the Turks and Caicos Islands, where they had to evade the intense pursuit of a Spanish warship.[39] From there, he arrived in Haiti, in the town of Cap-Haïtien, then from there, he made his way to the Dominican Republic. After 20 years of exile, he was now back in his homeland.[40]
He arrived in Monte Cristi on March 25, 1864 and immediately addressed the government of the Restoration. He was joyfully received by General Benito Monción.The next day, they left for Guayubín, where he saw his old friend, Matías Ramón Mella, appointed a few days before as Vice President of the Provisional Government. But unfortunately, Mella was bedridden in a serious state, which destroyed Duarte's soul. (Duarte always had special trust in Mella, as well as a close friendship. It was Mella that Duarte sent to Haiti to concretize the political alliance with the reformist Haitians who were fighting against Boyer, and it was Mella, once national independence was achieved, who proclaimed Duarte president of the Republic in Cibao, facts that prove the friendship and trust that existed between them). General José María Cabral, hero of the Battle of Santomé, was present at the emotional meeting.[39]
On March 28, he wrote a letter to the restoration government of Santiago expressing his willingness to consecrate what remains of his strength and life to the service of the Dominican Restoration. A few days later, the acting president, Ulises Francisco Espaillat, responded by saying that the Government “sees with indescribable joy” his return to the heart of the Homeland. In Guayubín he was attacked by malarial fever, so he had to stay bedridden until April 2, 1864. That day, still ill, he left for Santiago, and to make the occasion more unfortunate, they carried the seriously ill General Mella. They arrived in Santiago two days later and the next day he appeared before the restoration authorities, to whom he reiterated the concepts of his letter of the April 28, 1864. His health was going from bad to worse, so for a week he had to remain immobilized in bed. He could not see President General José Antonio Salcedo because he was campaigning in the South. On the 14th he received a letter from the Minister of Finance, Alfredo Deetjen, in which he communicated this: “My government having accepted the services that you have spontaneously offered us has decided to use them, entrusting the Republic of Venezuela with a mission whose purpose You will be informed in due course. In this virtue, my government hopes that you will be willing to get ready to embark on a trip while the credentials and instructions for the case are prepared.”[39]
The restoration government did not evaluate the importance that it had the presence of Duarte, which could have been due to the fact that his figure had has been buried by oblivion and that some of the leaders of the national contest had been supporters of Santana.[40] That letter dismayed Duarte. Sad and disappointed, he was shaken by his most varied thoughts, to the point that he came to think that his presence was not pleasant to certain circles of the government. This mission, neither desired nor requested by him, contradicted the effort made to return to the homeland and his desire to remain in the country fighting for the Restoration.[39]
In April 1864, the government of Santiago, through Espaillat, Duarte was asked to move to Venezuela at the head of a diplomatic mission in order to get help. He was not willing to accept the assignment, because his interest was to participate in the struggle in the interior of the country. But, a few days later, an article published in the Diario de la Marina, in Havana, was received, signed by G. (who could have been the writer Manuel de Jesús Galván, the main Dominican spokesperson of the Spanish regime in Santo Domingo), which predicted internal struggles among the restaurateurs for control due to the return of Duarte. So that it could not be thought that he was motivated by personal ambitions, Duarte informed Espaillat that he accepted the appointment, although for a few days he hoped to remain in the interior of the country. Espaillat, however, confirmed Duarte's appointment, although he told him that he should not stay with the impression that G.'s intrigue had had an effect.[41] At the beginning of June, invested as Minister Plenipotentiary, he left for Haiti, and at the end of the month, on the 28th, he arrived in Saint Thomas. He then continued to Curaçao, where he remained almost two months making enormous diplomatic efforts. In August, he returned to Caracas. His eyes never again saw his Dominican Republic, the land that he always loved and for which he resignedly accepted the greatest sacrifices.[39] After nearly two years of war, Spain annulled the annexation and called off its remaining troops. As a result, independence was restored, and by July 1865, the Spanish forces were off the island.
Duarte closely followed the evolution of the country, as shown in the active correspondence he had during those months, although he resigned from diplomatic representation following the overthrow of President Gaspar Polanco, who had released his credentials. He was above all concerned about the recomposition of annexationism, this time in favor of the United States, which was promoted mainly by Buenaventura Báez. That is why he pointed out in a letter to Félix María Delmonte:[42]
If I spoke out independent Dominican, since July 16, 1838..., if later, in the year '44, I spoke out against the French protectorate...; and if after twenty years of absence I have spontaneously returned to my country to protest with arms in hand against the annexation to Spain carried out despite the national vote for the deception of that traitor and parricide side, it is not to be expected that I stop protesting (and with me every good Dominican) which I protest and will always protest, I'm not just saying against the annexation of my Country to the United States, but to any other power on earth, and at the same time against any treaty that tends to undermine in the least our National Independence.. [...]
From the end of 1865, Dominican politics moved away of the patriotic objectives stated in the Restoration. Most of the leaders who emerged from that war oriented toward anarchic and conservative positions. Duarte must have assessed the poverty of the political leadership, as he refers in another letter to Delmonte on May 2, 1865:[43]
You say (and it is true) that Benigno Rojas is nothing but Yankee, and Báez who is nothing but Haitian-Gallo-Spanish, and Lavastida and Alfaus and Manueles are Yankees; Báez says that says that Bobadilla is nothing but Pandora, Melitón is everything, except Dominican, says José Portes who is in Saint-Thomas, and adds to this that being a senator, so that he would keep his mouth shut when the Annexation, Santana gave him a house. Poor country! If these are the consultants, what will be consulted?
He was said to have experienced new disappointment when he saw that the old annexationist, Buenaventura Báez, the architect of the Levasseur Plan of 1843, was elevated to the presidency, brought by none other than the then president, José María Cabral, champion of the Restoration in the south. From then on, although he did not leave Caracas, he disassociated himself from Dominican politics. The country entered a whirlwind of passions between leaders and a difficult situation in which annexation to the United States was approved in 1870. Practically, everyone forgot about Duarte; Occasionally he received visits or correspondence from liberal intellectuals interested in the reconstruction of the events that led to the birth of the Republic.[43] Gregorio Luperón, the hero of the Restoration War, made efforts to return Duarte back to the country. In addition, Duarte received a letter from President Ignacio María González, who invited him to reintegrate into the Dominican Republic. But by now, Duarte was in extreme poverty and his health was fading rapidly. Therefore, he could not respond to these calls for his return.
On July 14, 1876, Duarte's health was seriously deteriorating. Suffering from tuberculosis and pneumonia, his breathing had worsened, causing him to be confined to his bed. In his final moment, residing in his home, located on the corners of Zamuro and Pájaro, he was accompanied by sisters Rosa and Francisco, and his brother, Manuel. The next day, at 3 in the morning, he passed away. A text narrates that gloomy day in these terms:[44]
Caracas, on the night of July 14, 1876, Duarte was approaching his end and while his sisters, Rosa and Francisca, watched by his side; His brother Manuel, lost her mind, was shooting nonsense in a neighboring room. The most complete misery prevailed in the house, whose furniture was very scarce. Rosa and Francisca lived by sewing and their earnings were so meager that they could barely survive. Such was the environment in which Duarte was close to death, after suffering for a year from an exhausting illness (pneumonia) that turned him into a ghost. He was 63 years old and looked over eighty. A life of illness, deprivation and sacrifice had reduced him to that pitiful situation. For his neighbors in Caracas, Duarte was a Dominican who had had some importance in his country or at least that was what it seemed.
What these people did not know was that if the Duartes were in such a terrible situation, it was due to the love they felt for their country because on two occasions, in 1844 and 1863, they sacrificed an important part of the family heritage for it. Nor did they know that that old man, who looked abstracted and sick, had been one of the purest patricians in America, who had dedicated himself to serving his country with “soul, life and heart.” And they did not know that this poor Dominican, who lived so darkly, had been considered the Nazarene Jesus of the Dominicans. As for their sisters, those same people were unaware that those poor women, who now did not even have good eyesight to sew, together with their mother, now deceased, had manufactured more than 5,000 bullets for the independence of their country.
But let's go back to the patient. At two in the morning on Saturday, silence enveloped Caracas. The night advanced and the city looked deserted. In the sad Duarte house, Rosa and Francisca kept vigil. Everything announced the proximity of the end, and in the dying man's room, poorly lit by a candle, prayers alternated with silence. The time advances and the patient's breathing becomes more difficult. The wait is long. Finally, at three in the morning, on July 15, 1876, the dying man breathed his last sigh. The room is filled with sobs. Rosa and France bloom inconsolably. Duarte is dead. He has died far from the land where he was born, in a corner of Caracas, forgotten by his compatriots and plunged into the blackest misery.
The first news of his death was announced through the Diario de Avisos, of Caracas, in the afternoon edition of July 15, 1876. The note states the following:[45]
General (sic) Juan Pablo Duarte, leader of Dominican independence, has died; His relatives and friends who subscribe hope that you will accompany them to the burial of the body tomorrow at 9 am in the IP of Santa Rosalía." - Caracas, July 15, 1876.
Very few attended Duarte's funeral with the exceptions of family members, friends, and some immediate neighbors. Among the attendees were: Manuel Duarte, Enrique Duarte, José Ayala, Francisco Tejera, Federico Tejera, AS de Vizcarrondo, Marcos Guzmán, Felipe Tejera, Miguel Tejera and Andrés Tejera.
Duarte's personal life to date is the subject of discussion. It is known that he was a poet who followed Romanticism. He also used to play the guitar, the piano and the flute; he also practiced fencing. Duarte was also a polyglot who spoke six languages: Spanish, Latin, Portuguese, French, English and German.
During his youth, Duarte had several love affairs. His first relationship was with María Antonia Bobadilla, which she ended years later for unknown reasons. The Duarte Museum is said to have preserved the ring in which he gave to her as a sign of commitment. Years later, Duarte fell in love with Prudencia "Nona" Lluberes, a Catalan descendant with whom he formalized a relationship that was interrupted due to his exile and his subsequent suffering from tuberculosis. The dates on which Duarte maintained these relationships are not known, given the imprecision about his private life and the last years of his life in exile. Some historians also certify that he had a son during his stay in Venezuela with a woman named Marcela Mercedes.[46]
Jose Joaquin Perez Saviñon, director of the Duartiano Institute, commented on Duarte's first love story: "For unknown reasons, the engagement was broken." But Duarte would have the opportunity to fall in love again, this time with a descendant of Catalans and a relative of various patriots, Prudencia Lluberes, La Nona. Troncoso Sánchez says in Apuntes Duartianos that "his second girlfriend received, like his first, his promise of marriage symbolized in a ring."
Always persecuted by his ideals, Duarte loved, but could not continue with Prudencia "Nona" Lluberes. Pérez Saviñón comments that Yovanny Ferrúa wrote an article highlighting that already in exile, Duarte wanted to marry her by her power, but they did not let him because he already suffered from tuberculosis. "They even tore up the letters he sent her for fear of contagion from her, which is why Duarte's love letters are not preserved," says the president of the Duartiano Institute.[46]
Pérez Saviñón assures that Prudencia always hoped and dreamed of the Father of the country. She never married. Saviñón ecxplained:[46]
When they brought Duarte's remains, Nona lived in front of the Colón park and they took her out onto the balcony already blind, very old and it is said that she said: 'I have followed you up to here Juan Pablo,' and after a few months she died," she narrates.
While the country maintains the version that Duarte never married, much less that he had children, Bulletin 117 of the General Archive of the Nation, called "The Duarte family: Genealogy at the service of history," Antonio José Guerra Sánchez refers to the Theories of the descendants of Juan Pablo Duarte Díez.
Guerra Sánchez says:
At different times, some authors (including the journalist and historian Luis Padilla D'Onis, originally from Arecibo, Puerto Rico) have tried to indicate descent from founding father Juan Pablo Duarte, through his cousin Vicenta Díez, in her daughters Carmen Sandalia and Sinforosa Duarte Díez.
However, he adds that it is unknown that there was a Vicenta Díez and even less is known of which of the brothers of the mother of the hero was her daughter. What is certain is that Duarte did not marry, and according to Pérez Saviñón he did not “because he clearly said that he had married the country, all his efforts were for the country. The love for the homeland was superior to everything, even though he was already a defeated old man, he still thought about the homeland. He sacrificed himself for his spirit of service," he says.
Aside from his stature as a revolutionary leader, he was also known as a writer. Duarte did not pretend to be a poet, as Don Vetilio says, although he liked poetry as demonstrated by his published verses, including some saved poems, which he wrote when he was almost lost in the Venezuelan jungle. His poetry, as Ángela Peña points out, is “an extension of his patriotic and political work, even though there are poems of his in which he sings to women. It cannot be considered that the Father of the Nation was a poet. Literary creation was not a habit in his life. He wrote responding to the imperatives of the moment without having poetry as a constant and permanent way of expression." Among the known poems, written by Juan Pablo Duarte in Santo Domingo, are Tristezas de la noche, Santana, Canto de guerra, Antifona, El Criollo, Desconsuelo, Suplica, Himno, La Cartera del proscribado, and four other poems without titles. In his romantic production, is the poem Romance, the theme of bitterness is evident. Remoteness portrays the stormy pain of feeling expatriated from her land along with her eight companions in misfortune, those who gave everything to see her free and sovereign:
“ /…/ They who will launch themselves in the name of God, / Homeland and freedom; / They who gave the People / The desired independence. / They were thrown from the ground / For whose happiness they fought: / Outlawed, yes, by traitors / Those who were in excess of loyalty. / They were watched descend / to the quiet shore, / They He heard them say goodbye,/And from their muffled voice/I picked up the
However, of the writings in his eventful years of exile, there are only a few verses without titles, contributed by the Venezuelan historian Francisco Manuel de las Heras y Borrero in his essay Juan Pablo Duarte in Venezuela, written while he lived in Chaguas: “Here the Patricio will participate in literary and social gatherings, avoiding overtly political ones, given his refugee status. (…). Duarte's presence in this geographical location is clearly identified in 1856, the year in which the first book published in Apure was published. These are the Posthumous Honors of Mr. Marcelino Muñoz (…). In the reviewed publication, a poem by Juan Pablo Duarte appears, dedicated to extolling the merits of the deceased, his friend, "who was the president of the Masonic Sociedad Joven Achaguas, which Juan Pablo Duarte frequentedHere are the verses contributed by de las Heras and Borreros:
“Of paragon honor and model virtue,/ I call that impious world his own,/ and Heaven said without mercy, without mourning,/ with a tremendous voice “Marcelino is mine.” / And he heard that ruling, and without moaning in pain / with a calm, religious and pious face. / Goodbye he said to us with a serene face, / he who was from Apure the spirit. / And when the poor foreigner / sees himself sick and helpless, / who like the softened / will give him whole bread and home?
Duarte was, in his time, the most consistent exponent of nationalist and independence ideas derived from the liberal principles of the American Revolution and French Revolution of 1776 and 1789, respectively. He was also the main promoter of national consciousness and permanent defender of the Dominican national identity. He advocated the union of all Dominicans, as well as the establishment of a democratic republic based on the rule of the Constitution and the laws in order to fully guarantee the public rights and freedoms of citizens.
Duarte was never in favor of violating democratic procedures to access political power and direct national destinies. He believed in national unity as an indispensable principle to prevent civil discord and the desires of foreign powers from causing his independence project to succumb. He is remembered with respect as Father of the Dominican Republic with preservation of his admirable patriotic legacy, because thanks to his fruitful revolutionary work that today Dominicans constitute an ethnic and cultural community (which evolved throughout the centuries) proud to have as their own. He was always willing to defend national sovereignty against the claims of those who "without judgment and without heart they conspire against the health of the country.”
Duarte managed to establish a free Republic, which through the voting process, could give rise to a democracy where all citizens, in theory, could be equal and free. The study trips he made to Europe in his adolescence, a continent where liberal ideas resulting from the French Revolution were debated and imposed, greatly influenced his later attitudes in the independence struggles.[47] His political thought and his magnificent feat in the independence struggle, undoubtedly, places him in the position of Simón Bolívar, José de San Martín, José Gervasio Artigas, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, Antonio Maceo and José Martí.[48]He is considered a national hero and father of democracy in the Dominican Republic. He is also credited with being the precursor of Dominican theater by being the first to promote theatrical events through the La Filantrópica and La Dramática societies, which aimed to present theatrical works alluding to Dominican freedom.[47] Duarte ran serious dangers and misfortunes due to his profound knowledge acquired in Europe and his decision to create a Republic that would serve as a base for Dominicans to get rid of Haitian repression and the betrayals of conservatives who had accommodated their interests to Spain, France, Great Britain, and the United States, regardless of the persecution that Duarte and his followers fell victim to. In this vein, Dominican historian Vetilio Alfau Durán writes:[48]
During the twenty years of exile, misfortune had dug its claws into the body of Juan Pablo Duarte, annihilating him. Thus, aged, with the mark of the havoc marked on his face, he landed in the national territory, in the heart of Cibao, which was at war, to protest with weapons in his hands, against the annexation to Spain, he appeared before the Provisional Government. A restaurateur established in Santiago, he offers his services and makes this categorical statement: “No matter how desperate the cause of my country may be, it will always be the cause of honor, and I will always be willing to honor its banner with my blood.
One of his most emblematic phrases was without a doubt "Living without a country is the same as living without honor!" This quote left a great mark on the Dominican people.[47] In addition, his dream of a nation free of all foreign power is evident through another famous phrase: "Our homeland must be free and independent from any foreign power or the island sinks."
Duarte's revolutionary work has earned him praised from other leaders throughout North America. He gained acknowledgement from other Caribbean independence leaders, especially Eugenio Maria de Hostos of Puerto Rico, and José Martí of Cuba. Both leaders spoke admirably of Dominican Republic's struggle for freedom, with the former even referring to Duarte as the master of patriotism. The distinguished Dominican intellectual Federico Henríquez y Carvajal, a close friend and collaborator of Hostos, in his speech read, in his capacity as President of the Erector Board, at the inauguration of the monument to Juan Pablo Duarte on July 16, 1930, cites the following words of the Puerto Rican humanist referring to the patrician:[49]
When Cibao, to whom the restoration of independence was entrusted, did the wonders he did, Duarte presented himself to take his position. It seems that at that moment his agony began. It seems that, from that moment, he once again saw up close the ingratitude that had banished him twenty years ago. It seems that, from that moment, he saw the incompatibility that existed between him and the others, between the new and the old organizers of the defense of the homeland. It seems that, from that moment, he sentenced himself to death in exile. There is no doubt that Duarte was exiled again, that he once again went to wander hungry and lonely, lonely and hungry, through fields as undeveloped as these, and like almost all of them, for self-denial and patriotism. But there is also no doubt that the country owed him one last service: that of dying far from it, removing the weight of remorse from his shoulders!
Hostos left evidence in his intellectual work of the admiration and respect that the historical figure of the patrician inspired in him. In the book Visión de Hostos sobre Duarte, published in 2013 under the auspices of the General Archive of the Nation, we bring together several texts by the immortal author of Moral Social referring to the three fathers of the Dominican homeland, but with emphasis on Duarte. In The municipality of Santo Domingo - or The repatriation of Duarte's ashes, as this short article can be titled - Hostos discusses the interest of the First City in bringing the remains of Duarte to the Dominican Republic: "For a long time now, Luperón and other patriots had asked public opinion for the repatriation of Duarte's ashes. They preached in the desert,” says Hostos.[49]
It remains pending, for a later and more exhaustive investigation, to rescue a dramatic text that Hostos wrote in Chile alluding to the Duarte's return to his homeland in March 1864, according to the information that the historian Emilio Rodríguez Demorizi records: "There [in Chile] he wrote the children's comedy Duarte's Arrival, not to Chile naturally, but to the distant homeland. His children play, warlike, Dominicans and Haitians, and he is excited like a child when the eldest of them, victorious, shows him with his index finger, on the highest branch of an olive tree, the Duarte flag."[49]
Hostos refers to this children's play in a letter addressed to the editor of the newspaper El Telefono , from Santiago de Chile, on 23 September 1890, the year in which we assume he wrote the aforementioned comedy. He regrets not having been able, due to health problems that afflicted him, to perform The Arrival of Duarte, a children's comedy animated by affectionate memories and acclamations from little Dominicans that would not have failed to resonate among the spectators. In that letter there is a lot of love shown towards Duarte's homeland: "I have spent the [Chilean] national holidays unwell. Consequently, I have not been able to take the part in them that I wanted, and that would have made our Quisqueya and its flag take."[49]
Martí, who knew the life and work of Duarte, wrote about him on several occasions. In this regard, Emilio Rodríguez Demorizi published an essential text to know Martí's relationship with the Dominican Republic: Martí in Santo Domingo. The book collects everything that Martí, nicknamed the "Cuban Apostle," wrote on Dominican topics, including those referring to Duarte.[50] For the month of April 1894, funds were collected in Santo Domingo to erect the statue of the founder of the Republic, Juan Pablo Duarte. Generalissimo Máximo Gómez was in New York, where he was preparing to set off for Cuba to fight in the Cuban War of Independence, and decided to take a “parenthesis in revolutionary work to write to the director of Patria, by José Martí.” (Patria was the Cuban revolutionary newspaper). In Gómez's letter he requests the contribution of Cubans to "increase the funds (to) erect a statue of Juan Pablo Duarte worthy of his memory."[50]
Martí's response as director of Patria, called, Adhesion of Patria and General Gómez's letter were published on April 17. In it Martí shows great mastery of the Dominican historical process and, especially, of the figure of the founder of the Republic. There he speaks:[50][51]
And Patria, general, that in the courage of men and in the loyalty of women sees erected forever in the Dominican conscience, above transits and appearances, the indomitable vigilance with which the founder Duarte raised his fallen people.
Homeland, which still contemplates him, sagacious creator, illuminate with the fiery word, accused of being deluded and demagogic, the youth who in the humility of “La Trinitaria” learned from him to ignore the vile advice of well-off pride, or fear corrupter, who prefers the barragonies of dishonor to the health of freedom, always restless in childhood.
Homeland, which sees him plot, with the power of his council - and with no other arms than the idea, mother of arms - the rebellion that, from a leap of heroes, threw back the Haitian, so great when he defended his freedom as guilty when he oppressed others.
Homeland, which still sees, with the joy of a sister soul, the flash of Mella's blunderbuss light in the air, and an invincible people fall, standing, from the folds that unravel, opening to death, Sánchez's flag, there in the famous Puerta del Conde, on that day of the entrails, February 27.
Homeland, which later saw him, a victim of his own children, thrown out of power, which was in his hands like the ark of the Republic, and dying in expatriation, sad and poor, as a final service to the country, before whose appetites and fainting, freedom must be erected, in order to better preserve itself, with the poetry of sacrifice.
Homeland, with its two hands extended, asks Cubans and Puerto Ricans for their tribute for the monument to Duarte: the tribute of Americans to a martyr of freedom who redeems and edifies; the tribute of gratitude of Cubans to the homeland of the heroes who carried their cross on their bloody shoulder, and with the helmets of their horses marked the path of honor in Cuba.
Patria, in its next issue, opens the list of Cuba's tribute to Duarte's monument."
— José Marti
His birthplace was converted into a museum. The Duarte-Diez family lived there from their arrival in Santo Domingo until their exile.
Dominican Republic portal
Venezuela portal.svg/1280px-Latin_America_(orthographic_projection).svg.png){kind=small}
Latin America portal
Caribbean portal
Biography portal
History portal
Liberalism portal
Philosophy portal{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)